UnionPay payment service is rolled out in Montenegro

As part of the agreement, UnionPay cardholders will be able to withdraw cash from all ATMs of Altas Bank; over the coming months, local merchants of Altas Bank will also be able to accept UnionPay cards. The bank has a wide portfolio of merchants in tourism sectors such as hotels, restaurants, car rental and tourist agencies. In addition, as the agreement is not solely focused on Montenegro, the two companies will work together to extend acceptance across the wider region.

Benefitting from the changes to visa requirements in some Balkan countries, an increasing number of Chinese people are visiting the region for business reasons, as well as on holiday. According to the press release, over the last two years there has been a 98% increase in Chinese visitors to Montenegro while in 2017 there were almost as many tourists from China as from the USA (23,495 compared to 23,842).

In Europe, UnionPay is now accepted at more than 3.3 million merchants in 40 countries and regions, covering more than 60% of all the bankcard-accepting merchants in Europe. Meanwhile, its global network has extended to 171 countries and regions, which covers 51 million merchants and over 2.6 million ATMs worldwide.